Xbox head Phil Spencer has spent 233 hours playingVampire Survivors, revealed by his yearly wrap-up for the platform. Indie-darlingVampire Survivorstook the gaming world by storm early this year and refused to let go, birthing an entire genre and dozens of clones that have not yet been able to replicate its magic.
Vampire Survivorsis best described as a roguelike shoot ‘em-up developed by Luca Galante, also known as poncle. A relatively quiet early access launch in December of last year did not last long and within monthsVampire Survivorswas one of the most played titles on Steam, becoming an incredibly popular option for Valve’s Steam Deck. It was a cultural event of such magnitude that some critics and commentators consideredVampire Survivorsto be a Game of the Year contender, despondent upon learning that it had only managed to receive a nomination for Best Debut Indie.Although it was beaten byStray, another indie that captured the hearts of gamers in 2022,Vampire Survivorsreceived a trailer at the Game Awards which announced a surprise mobile release due to arrive that day.
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However, before coming to mobile, the game became part of Xbox Game Pass, despite only costing $2.99 at the time. Phil Spencer, head of Microsoft Gaming and Xbox,has not held back his praise forVampire Survivors, although none could have expected just how much the roguelike had struck a chord with him. That was until Spencer posted his yearly summary for Xbox, showcasing a respectable achievement count and total playtime for someone who understandably spends more time dealing with video games than actually playing them.
Vampire Survivorswas Spencer’s most played game this year, spending 233 hours searching for vampires and coming up short. What makes that amount rather noteworthy is that the Xbox chief spent 641 hours playing video games as a whole through the ecosystem he manages, meaning that over a third of that time was afforded toVampire Survivors.Given that Spencer loaded up 53 titles this year, the remaining 52 were only enjoyed for an average of just under 8 hours, far from sufficient time to finish the majority of modern releases.
Spencer’s clear adoration for indies may grant a little insight into the year that Xbox has had, which offered little in the way of big-budget, genre-defining titlesbut did find success with more niche experiences through Game Pass, such as Obsidian’sGroundedandPentiment, two excellent games that were never expected to garner the same attention asElden RingorGod of War Ragnarok.
Vampire Survivorsis available on PC, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, and mobile devices.
